Columbia man arrested after crashing car into a tree

COLUMBIA — A Columbia man was arrested Monday after police said he fled from an officer in a car and crashed into a tree.

Dwayne Porter, 23, was parked in his car near Cosmopolitan Park around midnight when an officer came by to check the area at closing time, said Jessie Haden, the public information officer for the Columbia Police Department, in an e-mail.

Porter pulled around the patrol car and sped down the street, Haden said. The officer didn't see where the car went but followed in its general direction.

The 1998 Pontiac Grand Prix was found crashed into a tree on Parkside Drive, Haden said.

Firefighters and medics came to the scene, but Porter was not injured. No one else was in the car.

Porter smelled of alcohol and performed poorly on a sobriety test, Haden said.

He was arrested on suspicion of trespassing, driving with a revoked license, driving while intoxicated, resisting arrest and careless and impudent driving, Haden said. There were also four warrants for his arrest.